A/N: Hello again, my dear readers! If you clicked on this story and you haven't read Where Loyalties Lie, you should really go check WLL out, because this will make a lot more sense when you do.
If you've come here already having read WLL, then welcome back! The journey continues, as I said it would! Are you ready?
If so, then let's be off!
Once, the people of my city were split into three distinct groups.
The first of these groups was the militants; Knights, Lancers, and Freeshooters, who fought with their weapons and their fists, to defend and to serve the people who relied on them for safety.
The second of these was the magicians; Sorcerers, who used their arcane powers to provide us with food and knowledge; Nocturnes, whose magic songs could heal any wounds; and Diviners, the clairvoyants whose Sight allowed them to peer into the future and glimpse the hidden secrets in the world around them.
The third and last was the mixed group; the Academics who supplied the city with research and technology, and the Assassins, the masters of subterfuge and espionage.
Once, the people of my city lived in relative peace. Houses were Houses, and Guilds were Guilds, and nobody strayed far beyond the borders within which they lived their lives. There was order, and there was tranquility.
Now, there is only chaos and fire and ruin where once a shining city stood.
Radiant Garden is in ashes, its buildings destroyed and crumbling, its people hiding in fear. Upon its remains is constructed, from poison and darkness, the iron foundation of a new city, where fear and terror reign supreme.
This new city is ruled by those who remained behind when the defenders of peace departed; those who support death and destruction; the minions and harbingers of the dark.
In the days of House and Guild, they were called… the Assassins.